Textile Manufacture

The textile industry contains a vast array of problems where mathematical modelling may both illuminate the mechanisms involved in a process and provide useful predictive results. Almost all problems involve the study of the microstructure of fibres and the derivation of a realistic macroscopic model. Some examples that have been studied in OCIAM are:

• fluid-fibre interactions in the production line for man-made fibres.
• formation of artificial crimp in man-made fibres.
• combing of tufts of wool or cotton in a carding machine.
• elastic deformation of a tangled mass of fibres (e.g. roofing insulation)

Four DPhil theses and two MSc theses have been completed in this area.

People working in this area within OCIAM are